The Clouds Disperse
by The Bard of Essendra
Summary: After thousands of years Humankind rediscovers the mysterious Essendra Region. What does this portend for the inhabitants of this cryptic new land?


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Written By: Akai Shi-Koret, Blaze the Fire Dragon, and Kenocka

Rated: K

The Clouds Disperse

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><p>The clouds had dissipated, the fog evaporated, and the waters no longer churned in whirlpools at the boundaries of what were believed to be safe waters. Something had happened to break the Titan of the Abyss' concentration long enough that he couldn't catch onto the frayed edges of the illusion and so left the people exposed. The residents of the country all felt the sudden change, the rapid feeling of loss that came with their shield breaking. None of them had before acknowledged the sensation but now all knew that something was <em>wrong<em>.

For the first time since the illusion's founding the people were vulnerable to the outside world.

From atop the highest mountain, Rayquaza frowned. He had expected that the barrier would fall some day, but not now, not when the fledgling civilizations below were just starting to unite. He sighed, shifting his stance slightly. There was nothing for it now. Thanks to the sky watchers that man had created, they would know all about Essendra's existence by now. He could only hope that some measures could be taken to keep the wrong sort of people out of the nation.

The light touch of another's mind brushed against Rayquaza's. _'Ho-Oh has called a meeting,'_ the soft voice of Victini echoed. _'Your presence is requested.'_ Rayquaza snorted softly at the summons. The self-proclaimed Master of Winds obviously felt that there was something the Elder Children could do to halt the coming of man. Rayquaza knew better than that. Humans had conquered every territory they'd met, from the seas to the skies to the blackness beyond. Essendra, with or without the aid of the Elders, could do nothing to stop their advance. The most they could hope for at this point was to integrate the two people into one seamless society. With another soft sigh, Rayquaza launched himself into the skies, angling through the air towards the designated meeting place at the center of the Lake of Rest. _'Not the beginning of the end, perhaps, but a new beginning regardless.'_

* * *

><p>Ho-Oh stood at the focus of a semicircle of Elder Children, tapping his fingers impatiently against his arm as he scanned the skies. The majority of those he'd called had appeared within an hour or so of the summons, but a few hadn't arrived yet. He expected the Titan of the Abyss's absence due to the breaking of the illusion and assumed that the Dreamfeather and the Stormbringer were gone trying to halt the damage, but the continued tardiness of Rayquaza was beginning to wear on him. <em>'The fool needs to get his head out of the clouds more often,'<em> Ho-Oh thought to himself angrily. _'We cannot wait until it pleases him to grace us with his presence.'_

Before he could get too worked up, the shrieking cry of the Eternal Traveler echoed through the air and a green-armored figured came hurtling through the air from the summit of Ethereal Mountain, angling towards the lake. "About time," Ho-Oh grumbled under his breath. "You're late," he said sharply as the Dragon-type landed on the ancient stone with a heavy crunch. "We have much to discuss and little time to do it in."

"I'll arrive when I will," came Rayquaza's usual brash response. Within seconds he'd transformed from his natural dragon form into a glistening, green-scaled humanoid figure, replete with surprisingly direct clothing despite his often arrogant nature. "I know about the shield's breaking, we all do. I don't see a way to stop Man from coming to our shores. Once the humans have gotten an idea into their heads they generally die trying to achieve that goal in droves."

He remained standing, crossing his arms and keeping his narrow-eyed gaze on Ho-Oh, ignoring the others in the circle. "We should begin preparing the Essendrans for the coming of these people to avoid as much confrontation as possible. There will be fighting, humans always fight but at least we can thin the damage that will be done."

Rayquaza raked his eyes across the other Legends gathered at the meeting, simultaneously daring and asking them to speak against or with him.

A small child with bright blue eyes, orange hair, and baggy light brown clothing stood amongst the other legends. He stared up at Rayquaza but remained silent for now. The others knew this small boy as Victini. Victini had only ever met two humans; the man who imprisoned him, and the kind trainer who released him. Apart from the natures of these people Victini knew very little of the nature of humans.

Another figure spoke up from the crowd. "I'm with Rayquaza, the humans' destructive tendencies must be regulated and it is our responsibility to make sure they are." Registeel was the speaker.

Ho-Oh glowered back at the Dragon. "Essendra is all we have left, brother," he said sharply, his gaze sweeping across the assembled crowd. "One last place where we can truly be safe. Should the humans come here as well, where will we hide? Where will we go to escape from the pressures of that race? Do you really think that your Sky Pillar will go unnoticed for much longer, Rayquaza?" he said with a glare thrown at the green-armored humanoid. "Or what about you, Registeel?" he continued, turning towards the iron titan. "Will your tomb remain locked forever? I think not."

"We cannot let the humans simply _have _Essendra, not without a fight. There is much we can do to halt their advance. Are we not the Elder Children still? We used to be called gods for our powers. Let us use them to stop mankind from reaching our shores. This last bastion must not fall, unless we wish to live the rest of eternity in constant hiding, skulking in the shadows like the Blue-Eyed one until we are all captured."

"The damnable "Prodigy" skulks in shadows because he's a moody teenager with an existential state of mind that has had bad experiences with humankind from day one," Rayquaza fired back, ruffled at the thought that Man would dare to set foot on his residence without invitation. "I didn't say we should lie down and let the humans come here! Cresselia is working on that as we speak and Darkrai has agreed to remain here until her work is completed," snapped the Dragon, giving the Shadow King a sideways glare as he shuffled uncomfortably.

A suspicious tone carried itself across the room from Entei's mouth, "What exactly is Cresselia doing Rayquaza, that has Darkrai so discomfited?"

At this the Titan of Air turned his glare onto Darkrai completely for not keeping himself in check before turning back to the council at large. Most of them were watching with openly curious eyes that held a little disdain. Their unspoken leader was known for bullying people to seeing his way of thinking and getting them to do things they normally wouldn't.

"I've asked Cresselia to influence the dreams of humans with obscure tales of that species meeting another like them but not quite like them."

"It's mind control! Be plain about it! Influencing the dreams of others is mind control," Darkrai snapped bitterly, a look of hopeless desperation on his face. He hadn't wanted to go through with Rayquaza's plan (and neither had Cresselia) but the Essendrans were sorely outnumbered even with the help of the Elder Children on their side. Arms hanging glumly at his sides, the Corrupter of Dreams slid backwards into shadows, not disappearing but hoping to push the eyes of the group back onto the Dragon.

Crossed arms and a heated glare met the rest of the council as Rayquaza waited for the inevitable bombardment of ethics violations that were going to rain down on him the moment Ho-Oh recovered from his fury and shock.

Ho-Oh was completely taken aback by Darkrai's revelation. Physically halting mankind's advance through honorable combat was one thing; possessing them was another entirely. "You would dare to force our sister to exploit her powers thus?" he said in a cold rage, his voice carrying over the others in the conversation like the shout of a horn. "This is not just, Rayquaza! We are here to keep the balance of this world, not to destroy it! What you speak of is unacceptable, even if it would save this region!"

He would have continued further, but the tremble of the earth underneath his feet stopped his tirade. The massive form of Groudon stepped forward into the center of the ring, his ancient gaze meeting the eyes of every member before he spoke. "Peace, Ho-Oh," he said in a voice as dark and gravelly as the earth from which he was born. "Shouting will not solve anything. The deed has been done and there is none among us who can bring Dreamfeather back until the break of day. I agree it is wrong, and believe that our esteemed leader should have notified us all before acting, but we cannot fault him now." He stepped back into his place, the ground vibrating softly in approval of his words.

Ho-Oh glared angrily at the Behemoth, but was not about to start another confrontation. "As soon as we can, then, we must bring Cresselia back," he spoke. "And in the meantime, we must be discussing war tactics. Even if Rayquaza's meddling keeps the humans away for now, sooner or later their attention will return to us. We must be prepared."

_'I would dare to try and keep a people that haven't been exposed to humankind in thousands of years safe in all the ways I can think of! It's not just fighting that could kill the Essendrans! It's plague, disease, sicknesses that their bodies can't fight off! You want to discuss justice and war in the same breath but at least what I've done isn't going to kill anyone!'_

Rayquaza wanted to shout and rage at the Bird of Heaven but Groudon's words stopped him short; directly stating that he valued the Younger Children more than any human to ever exist would only bring about more controversy and would get the meeting nowhere.

The King of the Skies held his anger in with shaking fists and deep breaths and then spoke aloud again. "The Lucario would probably be best at organizing into a militia of sorts. They're well respected already and enough of them are seasoned combatants and military leaders. Having them help organize the people into fighting shape wouldn't be too suspicious would it?"

"It would be less suspicious than any of us asking for a sudden increase in fighting forces. The Lucario already have fighting schools set up in towns as it is," Entei offered cautiously. "We can't forget that some of the Essendrans have probably already noticed that the shield is gone. It might not have spread to the entire nation yet but if the psychics have anything to say about it that won't last long."

"Trying to mind control the humans into ignoring us is not the best course of action and it won't keep them away for long. I suggest we have a fighting force formed and positioned nearby when the humans arrive. We can ask them to supply vaccinations to the region if they intend to explore Essendra, and if they refuse we force them off the island as peacefully as possible. No actual attacking unless they become hostile." Suicune's voice had remained calm in the midst of the others raising their voices at each other.

"That's not enough, brother," Ho-Oh replied to Suicune's comment. "The best defense is a good offense - if you hit the enemy hard and fast enough, there is no need to defend yourself. As soon as the humans attempt to land on our shores, we must drive them back into the sea, give them no rest. The Leviathan will be most effective at keeping them off our shores, but we must be prepared in the event that they reach the shore."

He turned back towards Rayquaza, still glaring slightly from their spat earlier. "The difficulty in asking the Lucario is that not every race is going to accept help from the Lucario. Still, it's our best hope. Someone should also be sent to rally the city guards in Aegad. They should have some combat experience, at least."

Victini looked around anxiously, the others were frustrated and the meeting was going nowhere. The small boy had heard enough and raised his hand into the air creating a giant flaming "V" that stayed suspended in the air to quiet all the conversing amongst the others.

"If I may speak I say we need to come to a peaceful solution. Something just tells me that fighting the humans will not end well. Suicune's solution seems the best to me so far." Victini's flame died out at that point.

Rayquaza could only find one problem with Suicune's plan. "What will we do if we're forcing them off of the island and they don't want to leave? What will we do if they're just so interested that they decide fighting to stay here is worth the trouble and death?"

"That is a problem. We've all got an issue with just having a psychic "convince" humans that leaving is a good idea because more will just come in their place. Added onto that is that some humans aren't so easily swayed or might be carrying Dark-types," added Entei.

A deep rumbling sound issued from the back of Groudon's throat, signifying his wish to speak. "While there will be many humans who wish to exploit the Younger Children for their own gain and farm our land for its resources, can we truly say that every human who lands will be this dishonest? I counsel patience, brothers. Mankind is a strange race, full of the capacity for both great evil and greater good. It may be that they surprise us. Only the wicked need to be expelled."

"Very well. You've all made your opinions known. If there are no dissenters, then I vote we go with Suicune's plan," announced Rayquaza boldly. "Hand up for the plan, hands down against."

Not a hand was down.

Ho-Oh cleared his throat and stepped forward as soon as the vote was done. "It is unanimous then," he proclaimed in a loud voice. "The humans will be allowed to set foot on these shores, so long as they promise to treat the Younger Children with the respect they deserve. It will be our job, then, to watch over the meeting of the two races. May the decision of the Council be correct, with the help of the Creator." With that, the meeting adjourned.

* * *

><p>As expected humankind didn't delay their expeditions to the newly uncovered island. Some of them, namely anything that was under a military's control, were turned away by tidal forces under the control of the Titan of the Abyss and the Lord of the Oceans. No one wanted an organized human military presence in Essendra even if they meant no harm. The first human ship allowed to anchor off the coast of Essendra was a re-purposed cargo ship carrying a group of humans all in the same outfits of green and brown. Some members of the group wore white and others deferred to them; obviously they were in charge. When their gig landed and the group had been settled in for a few days a few different representatives of the Essendran populace showed themselves.<p>

The expected astonishment was there followed by nervousness on both sides. For the better part of a day the two groups camped within eyesight of one another before the humans sent over three of their people. They were surprised to find that the Essendrans could speak rudimentary English although none would reveal how they knew the language. The group of humans listened to what the Essendrans wanted, peace, vaccinations against disease, and understanding. Again the knowledge of the outside world was not provided but in an attempt to keep the meeting peaceful the humans let the issue drop.

The people in the cargo ship were members of a growing faction calling themselves Team Gaia. They saw humans as a threat to Pokémon and with the discovery of the Essendrans, them as well. With their creed that humankind should go extinct, Team Gaia began gathering medical supplies in secret and shipping it to the island.

From afar, Rayquaza didn't know of what the two people's spoke of but he could see the nervousness that came with meeting an alien species.

"This will work. There will be some hiccups but this will work," muttered Rayquaza, as he tapped his fingers against his arm. Crossed around his chest he stiffened his arms, an angrily worried frown at his brow as he watched the thus far friendly proceedings.

"Don't fret, my brother," Ho-Oh replied, slapping Rayquaza's shoulder in a friendly way. "I was anxious that this first encounter would end in bloodshed, but it appears that all of our anxieties were for naught." His eyes shimmered with hope as he observed the two races finally coming together. "Any problems that occur can be resolved. Are we not still the Elder Children?"

"Yes we are brother. Let's hope that the two people's can remain this friendly toward one another."

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><p>That was two years ago, when members of Team Gaia were the only ones allowed on the island because of all the help and support they provided the Essendrans. Now, cautiously parts of the borders are being opened to other visitors that pass inspection. Some humans with less than noble intentions have made their way into the country, the land is simply too big to stop all of the intruders from getting in.<p>

This is where we start our journey.

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><p><span>Characters by order of appearance:<span>

Rayquaza – Kenocka

Victini – Blaze the Fire Dragon

Ho-Oh – Akai Shi-Koret

Registeel – Blaze the Fire Dragon

Entei – Kenocka

Darkrai – Kenocka

Groudon – Akai Shi-Koret

Suicune – Blaze the Fire Dragon

Legendary Titles:

Lugia – The Great Dragon, the Guardian of the Sea, the Leviathan, Singer in Darkness, He of the Silver Wings, Soulstorm, the Fulcrum, the White Wanderer, the Living Moonlight, The Titan of the Abyss

Rayquaza – Sailor's Savior, King of the Skies, The Great Guardian, Eternal Traveler, Titan of Air

Victini – Star of Victory, God of Victory, Victory Sprite

Ho-Oh – The Bird of Heaven, The Life Binder, The Phoenix King, The Guardian of the Sky, The Sacred Flame, the Guardian of the Skies, Master of the Winds

Registeel – Iron Golem

Entei – The Eastern Volcano

Cresselia – Rainbow Queen, Bringer of Sleep, Soothing Voice, Moonshine, Dreamfeather

Darkrai – Shadow King, Lord of Eternal Night, Master of Nightmares, Corrupter of Dreams, Emperor of Darkness

Kyogre – The Stormbringer, King of Rains, Leviathan, Lord of the Oceans

Mewtwo – Genetic Overlord, Stalker in the Shadows, The Blue-Eyed, The Prodigy, The Shadow Pokémon

Groudon - Bringer of the Drought, Earthscorcher, Emissary of the Sun, Behemoth, King of Continents, Lord of the Wastes

Suicune - The North Wind


End file.
